


Unbreakable Bonds

by mysnowbelle



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Gen, Not Beta Read, Spoilers - Kingdom Hearts III, Update tags as the story continues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-21
Updated: 2019-06-05
Packaged: 2019-11-01 17:55:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17872022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mysnowbelle/pseuds/mysnowbelle
Summary: During the war, you have to always expect the unexpected. But no one will ever be prepared for when it actually happens.





	1. Awaken

Sora, Donald, and Goofy along with Aqua were making their way to Castle Oblivion to finally wake up Ven.

"Hey Aqua, are you excited to see Ven again?" Goofy asked.

"Yes. I'm glad that my magic was able to protect them all these years. I said that I was only going to be gone for a bit but it has been so many years. I hope he won't be mad I left him all alone for so long."

"Don't worry, Aqua. I'm sure that he doesn't mind. I have a feeling that he would be so happy to see you again." Sora said with a smile.

Aqua looked at him and for a split second, she could see Ven smiling up at her just liked he always did.

The four of them finally made it up to the front doors of the castle. Aqua summoned her former master's Keyblade and aimed it at the doors as she undid the spell on the castle. The environment around them began to shift and the towers on the castle began to shift while chains grew from them and connected to other floating islands nearby. The ground grew more vibrant and the sky cleared to become more alive. The building before them no longer looked like the twisted remains of a world that fell to darkness, it looked like a place that people could call home.

Aqua looked up at her former home and smiled at it's restored state.

"Come on, guys! Let's go!." Sora sprinted ahead of them in to the castle with Donald and Goofy following closely behind.

Aqua soon followed and they made their way to the throne room to see a still sleeping Ven sitting on the throne. She ran up to the throne and kneeled before him gently shaking him to try and wake him up.

"Ven. Come on. Please wake up. We need your help right now. Please."

"Aww. That's such a cute reunion." A voice said out of nowhere.

Everyone turned to see someone in a full masked standing before them.

Aqua immediately glared at the new person in the room.

"Vanitas! What are you doing here? You are supposed to be dead!"

"I'm hurt." Vanitas mocked. "I thought you would be glad that I made it to this reunion. I was looking forward to meeting my brother again."

He jumped up posed to attack the vulnerable Ven but Aqua was able to jump in between and blocked the attack with her Keyblade.

"Aqua!" yelled Sora, Donald, and Goofy.

 They summoned their weapons and tried to join the fight but were stopped by a barrier separating them from trying to help.

"Sorry, guys." Aqua said. "This is my fight."

"But you are not fully recovered from the Realm of Darkness." Sora pleaded. "Please let us help."

"No. It's my job to protect my friends. I will not fail to get rid of you a second time."

Aqua shot herself toward her foe but her attack was blocked by Vanitas' Keyblade. She jumped back and shot a Blizzaga spell at him and managed to hit him slowing him down. Vanitas started teleporting around the arena and Aqua found an opening and slashed at him when he got close enough. They constantly kept exchanging blows and doing so allowed Aqua to gain the upper hand and was about to end the fight but Vanitas changed his attack to try and hurt the sleeping Ven. At the last second, she was able to intercept the attack but she did not manage to block the entire attack and fell. 

"No!" shouted Sora. 

He began to bang against the barrier but it was not working. He closed his eyes for a second and when he opened them, he noticed he was no longer in the Land of Departure.

* * *

 

Sora saw a massive stained glass mural before him. He realized quickly that he was looking at his heart but was confused to why he was here. 

_Sora. You need to free me so I can help Aqua._

"But I don't know how. I don't have the power of waking."

_Yes, you do. You had it all along. You just have to awaken it and you can use it to help your friends._

Sora nodded and summoned his Keyblade pointing it toward his heart on the mural. A beam of light shot from it and it released three orbs of light from the glass. 

* * *

 

When Sora opened his eyes again he realized he was back in the castle. He fell to his knees weak and looked up to see a horrific sight in front of him. Vanitas was about to strike down a vulnerable Aqua but Ven broke the barrier in time to protect his friend.

"Vanitas! I'm not letting you hurt my friends again!"

Vanitas jumped back from the attack surprised but amused at the current situation.

"Nice to see you awake again brother! It has been too long."

"I thought I defeated you before. How did you make it back?"

"I still have a destiny to fulfill just like the rest of you. If you are awake then that means...." 

Vanitas turned to Sora and saw him on his knees clutching at his chest.

"If I can't kill one brother, then I'll just go after the other."

He teleported towards Sora and Donald and Goofy were not fast enough to protect their friend. He was about to strike down Sora when his attack was blocked by Kingdom Key and Oathkeeper. Vanitas and Sora looked up to see two figures in black coats between them. Vanitas jumped back again and took a good look at the new enemies.

"Huh. It seems like Ven also has a twin as well as that Princess of Heart. I know you two. I have heard stories of you two from time to time. It really is a big reunion isn't it?"

Vanitas summoned a portal behind him and began walking toward it.

"There are too many guardians here right now. I shall take my leave but don't worry, we will see each other again soon at that fated place."

He disappeared in to the portal as it slowly faded from existence.

Sora managed to get up thanks to Donald and Goofy and made his way to Ven and Aqua.

"Guys, are you okay?"

"Yes, thank you, Sora." Aqua replied.

"Huh?" Ven said confused. "You are Sora?"

"Yeah. Nice to finally meet you Ventus." Sora said with a smile.

For a second, Sora's appearance briefly changed that too of Vanitas but it just as quickly disappeared.

"So you were my second chance." Ven wondered out loud.

"Huh?"

"Nothing. Nice to meet you. Please call me Ven." He said as held out his had to shake. Sora grabbed it and shook his hand.

"Yeah! Nice to finally meet you."

"Um. Guys?" Goofy said unexpectedly. "We have a couple of new friends here too."

"Oh yeah!" Sora exclaimed.

He swiftly turned around and greeted Roxas and Xion.

"You are both actually here! How did that happen?"

Roxas chuckled at Sora's enthusiasm. "I really don't know. Maybe something happened when you released Ventus from his heart and it let us out as well."

"Yeah. I finally get to meet you in person as well Sora." Xion said with a smile. She held out her hand and Sora happily took it in his own and shook it.

"Yes. Thank you both for saving us when we needed it."

"Woah." Ven slowly approached the three but was not taking his eyes off Roxas. "Why do you look so much like me?"

"I think that would have to be something that Master Yen Sid could explain because I don't know the full answer myself." Roxas replied.

"Yeah! We should head back to the tower and report to the Master!" exclaimed Donald. "He would be surprised that we managed to bring back more than one Keyblade wielder."

"All right! Let's go!" Sora said proudly. He was about to lead the way when he was stopped by Roxas and Xion.

"Guys, we will meet you back at the Gummi Ship in a bit." Xion explained.

The rest of the group walked away leaving the three of them in the throne room.

"What's wrong?" Sora questioned.

"Are you feeling okay, Sora?" Roxas said worried.

"Yeah. What do you mean?"

"When Vanitas went to attack you, it seems like you were hurt before he even approached you." Xion explained.

"Yeah, at first I was really weak but maybe that's because of releasing Ven."

"Are you sure?" questioned Roxas. "Nothing else is wrong?"

"Yes. I'm fine. Maybe when we get back to Master Yen Sid's tower, I'll rest up but after that, I will be ready to go!"

"Okay then if that's what you say. Let's head back then."

Xion and Roxas ran ahead with Sora following close behind. When they made it back to the ship, Sora looked down at his hand and clenched it in to a fist. He looked up, shook his head, and ran up the ramp to begin the journey back to the Tower.


	2. Unexpected

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, I was blown away by the response to the first chapter. The amount of kudos on this was more than I expected and the comment by Libra-no-ninja9 really made me motivated to write this next chapter. Thank you and I hope you all like this next chapter.

The group finally made it back to the Tower not long after. They all left the ship led by Sora himself.

"Hey Roxas and Xion, I can't wait for you guys to meet Axel again. Or does he go by Lea now?" Sora said aloud.

Xion looked down sadly. "Do you think he would remember me?"

Sora took her hands in his and made her look up at his smiling face. "Don't worry about it! I'm sure that he would be so happy to see you two again. I'm sure of it." 

Sora let her go and spun back around to head towards the entrance of the castle.

"Besides, he has so many things to tell you two such as he is a Keyblade wielder now."

"WHAT!" said Roxas and Xion surprised.

"Yeah. You two kind of missed a lot of things while you were gone. But don't worry Master Yen Sid can fill all of you guys in and I'm sure Jiminy will allow you to read his journal on what happened."

"Huh. So much has happened while we were gone." Ven said looking up at Aqua. 

Aqua smiled at him and ruffled his hair fondly. "Don't worry about that Ven. Things may have changed but that does not mean that we are alone. I know that we can get Terra back too and go back to our normal lives."

The group finally made it inside the tower and began going up the long staircase to the top.

"Hey, guys?" Sora began. "Can you fill in the Master for me? I'm going to my room to rest up a bit. I'll be up in an hour or so."

"Sure, Sora." said Goofy. 

Sora than waved bye as he broke off from the group and headed down the separate hall to the bedrooms of the tower and everyone else making it to the office of the wise master.

* * *

Yen Sid was briefing Kairi and Axel about the current status of the other missions.

"Riku and Mickey soon be back soon after they check on some things at Radiant Garden. I believe Sora should be back any minute with Ven in tow. When they are all here, we should have our seven guardians and we will be ready to combat the thirteen darknesses."

Kairi smiled at the thought of seeing her friends again. She learned a lot training under Merlin and she is so excited to tell Sora and Riku all about it. Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock on the door and Donald coming in to the room.

"Master Yen Sid, we have made it back!" announced Donald. "We found Ven and brought him here but we managed to bring a couple extra people as well."

Axel smirked at his announcement. "What? Did we miss a party or something? You should have invited-"

Both Roxas and Xion slowly walked in to the room and immediately found Axel's eyes.

"Hello, again Axel." Roxas started sheepishly. "You probably don't remember her but, her names-"

"Xion."

She looked up at him surprised with tears starting to form in her eyes. "Huh? You know who I am?" 

Axel had tears streaming down his eyes. "How could I forget my two best friends?"

The three of them ran and made a group hug each one weeping softly as they were finally back together. Everyone else in the room smiled at the happy reunion before them especially Kairi who knew how much Axel wanted to reunite with them.

* * *

Sora was laying on his bed looking up at the ceiling of his room. He held up his hand but dropped it when nothing happened.

He turned to his side and closed his eyes to think about what happened back at the Land of Departure.

_Sora opened his eyes after freeing Ven but he suddenly felt weak. He could not hold up his weight so he fell to his knees looking up to see Aqua about to be struck down by Vanitas. He tried summoning his Keyblade but it would not appear no matter how hard he tried to call it. He put his hand up to his chest and clenched it suddenly feeling the loneliness that was not present before. Sora saw that Vanitas changed his target to him and felt fear creep in. The protection that the Keyblade granted him was no longer present and this became the first time in a while where he was genuinely afraid for his survival. Sora closed his eyes to not stare his death in the face only to be surprised that both Roxas and Xion was able to protect him in time. They were restored and his fear changed to relief because he realized that even if he lost his ability to wield a Keyblade, then at least the Guardians of Light won't be at a loss without him._

_Sora pushed away those thoughts to the back of his mind and went to go check on Aqua and Ven. They can't know what happened to him. They already have so many things to worry about and this is not the time to sour a reunion that was over ten years delayed. Roxas and Xion too should not have to worry about him either. They have been protecting his heart for so long already and this information will only affect them more._

He will figure out a solution in time. It will come eventually but now is the time to prepare for the fated battle. 

A soft knock interrupted Sora's thoughts and he looked up to see Riku coming in to his room and sit on the edge of his bed.

"You doing alright? They told me you weren't feeling well and came here to rest up for a bit."

Sora got up and sat next to Riku not meeting his eyes and started kicking his feet as if he was bored.

"Yeah. But only for a bit. Don't worry about me."

Riku noticed his odd lack of enthusiasm and noticed something was wrong.

"What's bugging you? Usually, you don't act as down or tired and I kind of expected you to be the most excited about seeing everyone together upstairs."

"Riku, there is something I need to tell you."

"What is it Sora?"

"..I-"

Kairi suddenly barged in to the room startling both Sora and Riku.

"Sorry but, Master Yen Sid is calling an urgent meeting now that everyone is finally here."

Riku got up and started heading towards the door. "You can tell me afterward Sora. Come on. Let's head up."

Riku disappeared in to the hallway and all Sora could do was look up at the empty space he left and sighed.

"Hopefully this won't have to wait long."

* * *

The guardians of light stood before the old master who was deep in thought.

"We have gathered our Seven Lights as well as one extra in the event that we would need one. This is going to be a tough battle to fight but I am very confident that all of you will be ready to step up to the challenge and protect the Realm of Light from the dark forces threating to harm it. I have put my faith in all of you that you will succeed. Are you all prepared to fight in this war?"

"Yes, sir!" Everyone replied with a salute.

"Then may your heart be your-"

Suddenly an explosion rocked the tower sending everyone to the ground.

Mickey was first to recollect himself. "What was that?"

Donald quickly got up and ran to the window behind Yen Sid's chair.

"Oh No."

"What is it?" Sora questioned.

"It's the Organization! They are attacking the Tower!"

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was where I was supposed to end the first chapter but I cut in short so it won't run too long and I could plan out a bit better. I know I said that in the last one that this is where the plot takes a major turn from the game but really it was only at the end. The next chapter will be hopefully out soon but no time frame this time. Thank you for reading!


	3. Things Change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything goes wrong at the worst time possible.

The guardians of light made their way out of the tower except for Mickey, Donald, and Goofy who elected to stay at the top to guard Master Yen Sid.

When they reached the bottom, they saw the entire courtyard being covered with variations of Heartless and Nobodies. 

"Come on, guys!" Riku cried summoning his Keyblade.

Everyone followed suit and began fighting the enemies before them but too busy to notice Sora staying behind.

Sora stayed near the entrance of the tower partially hidden behind some bushes and casting the occasional weak fire attack whenever any of the enemies got too close. 

_I have to do something to help but if I go, I might just get in their way._

Just then two corridors of darkness appeared and stepped out Ansem and Young Xehanort. All the guardians stopped their attacks and focused on their new guests.

"What are you two doing here?" yelled Riku. "I thought our fight was elsewhere."

He ran towards Ansem, keyblade at the ready to strike down his worst enemy but was blocked by his Guardian. Aqua and Ven ran to him for support while the others stood before Xehanort ready to fight them at a moment's notice.

Young Xehanort smirked at the heroes. "Yes. Our battle will soon begin at that fated place, but there were some things we needed to get done first."

"How did you get past Master Yen Sid's barrier?" questioned Aqua with a glare. "His magic is powerful enough to protect this world from any force of darkness."

"True. But even he makes mistakes every now and then. All you have to do is find that weak point and everything goes downhill from there. Right now he is having a nice chat with a version of myself."

* * *

At the top of the tower, Yen Sid's office was overrun by nobodies. Mickey, Donald, and Goofy are fighting off the hoard of enemies while Yen Sid is busy blocking an attack by Xemnas. 

"It seems like you are not as powerful as you thought you were,  _Master._ " Xemnas said sarcastically. His energy blades were stopped by Yen Sid but both of them can see the little cracks forming in the shield.

"Master Yen Sid!" cried the Disney Castle residents. They tried to run to him and assist but they were blocked by more nobodies.

The old master was gritting his teeth at the effort it's taking to keep the Nobody from harming him. "What is your goal here? I thought we were settling this at the Keyblade Graveyard?"

"We will but we still need our thirteen to fight against your seven lights."

"Then what are you doing here? I thought you already had your forces."

"Oh. You shall see in due time."

* * *

 Back at the base of the tower, everyone gasped at that revelation.

"We have to go help the Master!" cried Ven.

"Oh we can't have you doing that." said Young Xehanort. "We came to check on your progress. It seems like you have all your guardians of light and a little more it seems."

Riku glared at the time traveler. "What of it? You have your army ready at this point. Why attack us here?"

"That is because we don't have our thirteen. We have twelve of our chosen members and we only need our thirteenth to join our ranks."

The color drained from Riku's face as his mind put all the pieces together. He turned back to see Sora's terrified face staring right back at him as he seemingly came to the same conclusion as well.

"Sora!" Riku shouted. "Run!"

Sora turned to run up the steps to the tower but was stopped by a corridor of darkness. Xigbar stepped out smiling menacingly at him.

"Where are you going, little twerp? You think you are going to be safe in there?"

Sora held up his hand to try and call his keyblade again but nothing appeared. No flash of light. No means of defending himself from this worsening situation.

"What wrong? The little key brat can't summon his key?"

Both Xion and Roxas looked surprised at each other and then at Sora while worry was all over Ven's face which was slowly being replaced by guilt.

Riku and Kairi recovered from the shock the fastest and both started running toward their friend. They did not make it far as Ansem's guardian stopped Riku by slamming him against the ground similar to what happened in the Sleeping Realm and Kairi was grabbed by Young Xehanort and lifted off the ground so she could not get away.

"Riku! Kairi!" Sora shouted reaching out and running toward them. He took one step down the tower before being forcefully grabbed from behind by the Sharpshooter Nobody. 

"Can't have you going anywhere." 

Xigbar raised his free hand over Sora and cast a sleeping spell over the boy.

Sora saw his friends reaching out for him as the curtain of sleep fell over him.

"Guys...." he said before sleep took him and he fell forwards in to Xigbar's arms. 

He was hoised over his shoulders as a corridor opened up around him. 

"That was fun guys! See you all soon at the fated battle."

The corridor closed taking both the Nobody and Sora away.

The rest of the guardians attacked the two remaining Organization members with anger clearly evident in each of their eyes.

Ansem and Xehanort let go of Riku and Kairi and disappeared in their own corridors but not without the both of them smirking at the remaining guardians.

Riku tried to chase after them but he could not reach the portals in time. 

All of them had various looks of sadness and anger but none was as bad as Riku who tilted his head to the sky with his eyes closed and yelled at the sky in fury.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry!!!!! I did not mean for this long span of time between chapters! I would have had a chapter out quicker but I am a full-time university student and the work took up most of my time. Summer is coming up soon and when that happens, I plan to have shorter times between chapters. I even have ideas for a lighter High School AU story that uses characters from Kingdom Hearts. But I don't want that to get in the way of this story so I probably won't start on it until this one is done. I promise to finish this story and not abandon it like the other ones on my profile. The next one will be up soon so please look forward to it!


	4. Uncertainty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah. I'm back. Yeah, I told you that I was bad at updating regularly. I haven't forgotten this so don't worry about that, it's just I want to post the best chapter I can write but sadly my muse stayed away for so long. It came back a bit so I wanted to write what I have planned before the idea floats away so hopefully, this chapter is still to the same quality as my previous ones.

Sora woke up to a room fully devoid of color.

_Where am I?_

He looked around and saw that he had been sleeping on a completely white bed that perfectly matches the rest of the all-white bedroom surrounding him.

_Well, this is oddly familiar.... Where have I seen this place before?_

Sora got off the bed and walked up to this large window. When he looked out, he could see the remains of a large black and white city stretching far from the building he was currently in.

_This is the World That Never Was! No wonder it looks so familiar. Roxas would look out from a window like this when he was still in the Organization._

Sora closed his eyes reminiscing on the memories that were not actually his before a sudden realization hit him like a train.

_Wait! What happened? We were fighting outside of Yen Sid's tower but what happened after that?_

He sifted through his memories trying to find an answer to why he is not with his friends and instead in a bedroom of the Castle That Never Was. 

_Either way, I have to get out of here! Where is that exit? It can't be that different from the last time I was here._

Sora made his way over to the door and tried to open it. Strangely it was not locked and he opened it only enough so he could peek out into the hallway in the even someone might be on the other side.

_It seems like the coast is clear. Maybe I can sneak out without anyone noticing. I wonder if everyone else is okay though._

* * *

"What do you mean we should stay here rather than chase after them!" shouted a very angry and irritated Riku as he slammed his hands on the old master's desk. 

It has only been a short time from when the tower was attacked but everyone was itching to go after them and save Sora. No one was more willing to run in then Riku himself and with a response like that by Yen Sid, he can't help glaring daggers at the old sorcerer.

"I'm saying that we don't be too hasty with what happens next." replied Yen Sid. "I understand that you wish to save Sora but we have to plan things out first. We can't afford another mistake with opponents like Xehanort."

"Our plan is we go in and save Sora! What else do we need to plan?"

Mickey walked up to his friend and place a hand on his side getting his attention.

"Riku, I understand your anger but the master has a point. If we just run in, we could be at a disadvantage. Someone else could get hurt if we are not careful."

Aqua joined Mickey at Riku side and nodded in agreement to Mickey.

"Riku, I understand what you are feeling right now. The same happened to me when Terra was taken by Master Xehanort. We failed to save him back then because we had no real plan going into the Keyblade War. We won't make the same mistake again."

 The anger in Riku was soon replaced with determination. He turned to Yen Sid bowing his head in a silent apology.

"So what should we do now? What is the next step from here on?"

Yen Sid closed his eyes thinking hard about what their next move should be.

"We should prepare. Now that Xehanort has his 13 darknesses, we need to get ready for the inevitable battle that is the Keyblade War. He is not going to hold back and neither should we. Everyone, tomorrow you shall depart for the Keyblade Graveyard. I wish you good luck in the battles that lie ahead."

"Yes, sir!" everyone replied.

* * *

Sora was sneaking around the various corridors of the castle quietly thanking his luck that he as not run into anyone so far. 

_Weird how there is no one around._

He was about to turn the corner when he spotted a couple of organization members at the end of that hallway. He sped back behind the wall an took a small peek at who was there. It was Marluxia and Larexene speaking to each other but they were too far away to hear anything that they were talking about.

_There has to be another exit somewhere around here._

Sora started running back down the hallway but he nearly ran into someone a lot worse than the ones at the end of the other hallway. Saix turned a corner and nearly collided into Sora if not for Sora's last-minute swerve around him. He kept running down the hall hoping that the time will give him a head start in getting away from the berserker but when he turned around, Saix just kept walking as if he never saw Sora.

Sora rounded the nearest corner and rested his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

_That was really weird. He had to have seen me right? Let's just get out of here before him or someone else actually tries to chase after me._

Sora got up ready to sprint again but he was distracted by the mirror in front of him. It was not anything special. It was taller than him and there was not a speck on the perfect surface of the mirror. What distracted him was what was in the mirror specifically his reflection. His outfit has not changed nor his spikey hair but something else entirely. 

Staring back at him was not the ocean blue orbs that he has grown accustomed to. The mirror reflected cold golden eyes that held none of his usual light.

Sora touched the mirror thinking that it had to have some magic cast on it to give some sort of illusion but when he realized that it was just a normal mirror, he slid down to his knees turning his head to stare at the ground ignoring the harsh reality presented before him.

* * *

Sora lost track of time as he sat there on the cold floor before the mirror. He could not care less if anyone were to find him here defeated. 

A voice soon greeted him however that sounds so familiar yet foreign to his ears.

"It seems that the powerful guardian of light was brought down by a mirror of all things. How pitiful." sneered Vanitas. "If it was that easy, I would have done that myself a long time ago."

He leaned on the glass next to Sora looking down and smiling to himself at these turn of events.

"How is it that your friends boast about how strong you are but all I see is some weakling that can't even look at his own reflection."

Sora tried to ignore his comments but it was getting increasingly hard to keep the anger and irritation away.

"I have been told that in the time I was gone, you managed to beat the heartless and nobody of the master. You had to have been cheating because looking at you now, I don't believe it one bit."

The anger was building up in Sora but he managed to keep it from showing. He knew those things were true at a certain level because sometimes he could not believe that he managed to save the worlds twice with his own power.

"Well, that probably explains why even after accomplishing those feats, you have not been given the title of Keyblade Master. That other guy, Riku right? He was way more qualified than you. He even had his own keyblade given to him officially, not like you who only borrowed Ventus' power. You know, I actually believe you now. You said before that 'Your friends are your power'. Well, I can see how true that is now seeing how powerless you are now."

Sora was beginning to lose his battle against his temper. As his insults were being thrown at him, he tried to keep his composure. All he could do was clench his fist and grit his teeth to keep himself from lashing out.

"I can't wait to see them at the Keyblade Graveyard. There you will truly see that they are just as weak and useless as you."

That was Sora's breaking point. He could take the jabs at himself but he won't stand for his friends to be insulted like this. He quickly stood up and attacked Vanitas with a keyblade who barely had enough time to summon Void Gear to block the unexpected attack.

"You don't know them! They are powerful and are going to take you and Xehanort down as they did before!" Sora shouted with rage in his now golden eyes.

"There is that fire I was looking for!' Vanitas replied with a smirk. "See? The darkness is much more powerful than your stupid light! It is a shame it took you this long to realize that."

They broke away from each other but spared no time to rest as they clashed keyblades once more.

"I won't give in to the darkness! My heart is light and I will fight all of you to protect it!"

They were locked in an intense fight trading blows to each other and always countering each move that the other would attack with. Neither one of them had the upper hand and were always evenly matched.

Vanitas sneered at Sora's last statement. "It's too late Sora and you know it. You are just ignoring the reality before you. Just look at your keyblade and you know what I mean."

Sora looked down at his weapon and realized that he actually managed to summon a keyblade in the first place. His joy was dashed when he actually saw what kind of keyblade was in his hands. It looked like the Kingdom Key but the golds and silvers that his old one had was replaced by an all black color. The shine it once had is now seeped in darkness and the keychain attached to it was no longer the seal of King Mickey but rather a stylized x shape that he remembered from his time in the realm of sleep. 

"I told you, but you never listened. Your heart is no longer part of the light and your keyblade perfectly reflects that."

Sora gripped his new keyblade and was about to attack Vanitas again when he was stopped by a purple barrier separating the two of them.

They both looked to see Master Xehanort approach them with a smile on his face.

"My 13th, it seems that you have finally awakened. Now we can set out plans into motion."

Sora raised his keyblade to the old master glaring at him with a new found anger that he never experienced before. 

"I won't ever give in to you and do as you say. I'm not going to be your pawn anymore!"

Xehanort only smiled at his newest vessel and approached him confidently because he knew that Sora is not strong enough to truly oppose him.

"Well then, who should I choose to take your place? How about my former pupil Ventus or perhaps your best friend Riku? They would not be the ideal choice but they would suffice."

A feeling of panic washed over Sora and he could not stop the look of fear that showed on his face. 

"Don't you dare touch them." Sora replied darkly. 

"I will have my 13 whether it be you or one of them. There is no stopping fate no matter how hard you try."

Sora lowered his keybade in defeat but that did not take away the hatred he had for the old master. 

"Then let me ask you this one question. Why me?"

Master Xehanort smiled and he explained.

"At first I just went down the line of worthy candidates and ended up on you. But, you have a potential that I did not anticipate previously. You managed to delay your fate during that time in the realm of sleep and it caused me to rethink parts of my carefully crafted plan. Now I have greater plans for you, my boy. You just have to wait until the time is nigh where your place in all this reveals itself. Until then we have a war upon us and I hope you are ready for what's to come."

With that, the old master summoned a portal and disappeared into it with Vanitas following leaving Sora alone in the cold, empty hallway. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was a lot longer than I had planned. I guess its to make up for the long months with no update so I hope it can hold you over until the next one hopefully soon. I still plan to finish this over the summer and now that I am off from school, I can hopefully not make the updates take forever to go up. I hope you enjoyed and see you soon!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm really bad at updating my stories so if you really want the next chapter, feel free to yell at me to finish it on tumblr. My name there is @mai-is-here and feel free to send me an ask anytime!


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